Chinese Fans Engage in Fistfight Over Support for Son Heung-min in Korea-China Match

Situation at the Korea-China match on the 21st
Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-min faced various jeers from Chinese fans

An unexpected internal conflict erupted in the Chinese spectator section during the 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup match between South Korea and China.

A photo posted on the former Twitter account ‘X’ on the 21st is currently sparking conversation.

 

The photo shows a Chinese man, wearing a Tottenham Hotspur Son Heung-min jersey, fiercely fistfighting amidst a sea of Chinese home fans.

The story behind the photo is as follows: A Chinese man, a fan of Son Heung-min, cheered for Son’s outstanding performance enraged a Chinese home fan who was watching. Their argument escalated into a fistfight, and in no time, the Chinese spectator section became chaotic.

In fact, on that day, it was not unusual to spot Chinese spectators wearing Tottenham Hotspur Son Heung-min jerseys in the Chinese spectator section.

 

One man proudly displayed Son Heung-min’s jersey to the surrounding Chinese home fans from the start of the match and even boldly put it on. This infuriated the Chinese home fans, who showered him with boos and hostile glances.

Eventually, Chinese home fans pulled this man down from the stands and rushed at him together. Subsequently, they grabbed hold of the man’s clothing and forcibly dragged him down, trying to move him from the stands. Despite the sudden and challenging situation, the man held on tenaciously, resisting until the end.

The reason for the Chinese home fans’ outrageous behavior was, in fact, Son Heung-min. Son’s performance that day was simply explosive.

Son Heung-min proved his worth in response to the Chinese players who had tried to intimidate him the day before the match by saying, “Son Heung-min is not that scary a player,” and “Watch how we stop him.”

He started in the game that day and led the South Korean team’s offense with a daunting momentum. He scored a penalty kick goal in the 11th minute of the first half and a header goal in the 45th minute of the first half.

Son took the penalty kick earned by Hwang Hee-chan and scored the opening goal for his team. In the 45th minute of the first half, he redirected a corner kick from Lee Kang-in with a header close to the goal, powerfully shaking the Chinese goal net. Furthermore, in the 42nd minute of the second half, Son’s right-footed free kick connected with Jeong Seung-hyun’s header, securing the third goal.